Methods of making animation illustrators



Sept. 6, 1966 YATES 3,271,213

METHODS OF MAKING ANIMATION ILLUSTRATORS Filed Oct. 25, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 m1 He no no, [136 INVENTOR Donald N. Yates Sept. 6, 1966 D. N. YATES 3,271,213

METHODS OF MAKING ANIMATION ILLUSTRATORS Filed Oct. 25, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig.l2.

lNVENTOR Donald N. Yates zw/w WW} United States aten 3,271,213 METHODS OF MAKING ANIMATION ILLUSTRATORS Donald N. Yates, 710 Rockwood Drive, Gihsonia, Pa. Filed Oct. 25, 1962, Ser. No. 233,113 2 Claims. (Cl. 156-3) This invention relates to methods of making animation illustartors and to animation illustrators and particularly to a method of making animation illustrators by means of resisting printing and etching.

The animation of illustrations by means of a polarized segment of plastic cut and arranged so that successive pieces have axis on different angles under the influence of a polarized light source is not in itself new. For example, in my earlier Patent 3,054,204, I describe a form of animation illustrator in which such cut segments are used. This form of animator is quite successful in the production of the desired animation but its production is slow and costly by reason of the fact that each segment of the polarized plastic must be individually cut and cemented to the base member by hand. This is tendious work and demands considerable skill and patience.

I have discovered a method of making such animation illustrators which eliminates the tedious cutting and fitting of individual segments which has characterized the prior known practices. By my invention it is possible to mass produce animation illustrators and to enlarge or reduce them.

It is an object of my invention to produce various animation forms by any ordinary art work technique such as photography, silk screen printing, stencil printing, hand brushing, spraying, air brush and other reproduction techniques.

Another object of my invention is to make animated enlargements or reductions of a given piece of art work, thereby making possible the animation of film strip and film rolls with very little limitation on the complexity of the subject.

Still another object of this invention is to provide intensity control of any given animated area by use of half tone screen techniques. A further object of this invention is to provide a method of forming an animation unit by applying a resist over a polarized member, chemically removing the portion of polarized member not coated by the resist and assembling several portions so formed into a complete unit.

In a preferred practice of my invention, I coat a portion of polarized material with a chemical resist by any ordinary art work technique such as photography. I then dissolve that portion of the polarized material not covered by resist. I then assemble portions so prepared into a polarized animation illustrator of sandwich type.

In the foregoing general description I have set out certain objects, purposes and advantages of my invention. Other objects, purposes and advantages of my invention will be apparent from a consideration of the following description and the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is an isometric view, partly in section of a piece of polarized material;

FIGURE 2 is an isometric view, partly in section of the polarized material of FIGURE 1 with a portion covered by chemical resist;

FIGURE 3 is an isometric view, partly in section of the polarized material of FIGURE 2 after chemical etchmg;

FIGURE 4 is an exploded isometric view of four overlays of polarized segments prepared by this invention ready for assembly into a unit;

FIGURE 5 is a top plan view of the segments of FIG- URE 4 in asembled condition;

FIGURE 6 is a side elevation of the assembly of FIG- URE 5;

FIGURE 7 is an isometric view of a "second embodiment of my invention;

FIGURE 8 is a side elevation of an intermediate form of unit used in the second embodiment of my invention;

FIGURE 9 is a top plan view of a completed polarized animation unit according to the second embodiment of my invention;

FIGURE 10 is a section on the line XX of FIG- URE 9;

FIGURE 11 is a top plan view of several patterns of polarization prepared according to my invention;

FIGURE 12 is an exploded diagrammatic view of a back-lighted animation unit using the polarized animator of my invention;

FIGURE 13 is an exploded diagrammatic view of a front lighted reflecting animation unit using the polarized animator of m yinvention; and

FIGURE 14 is an exploded diagrammatic view of a projection animation unit using the polarized animator of my invention.

Referring to the drawings, I have illustrated a polarizing film 11 in the form of a stretched film of polyvinyl alcohol or similar material with polarizing characteristics dyed with iodine or other dichroic dye. The polarizing film 11 is attached by an adhesive 12 to a support 13 which may be a plastic resin sheet or the like, preferably of transparent isotropic nature and necessarily so when it is to be assembled as shown in FIGURES 46. A chemical resist 14 is applied over a selected area by photographic exposure, silk screen or other art work technique. This resist may take the form of an oil base paint, Vaseline, photographic resist, or any other well known material used to protect against chemical etching. The assembled unit with resist 14 applied is then subjected to a chemical etching to dissolve the polarizing film 11 which is not coated by the resist 14 leaving a portion of polarizing film corresponding to the shape of the resist 14 adhered to the support 13 as shown in FIGURE 3.

This same practice is followed to form a series of portions of polarized film on transparent isotropic supports whose successive axes are 45 apart. These portions are then assembled as illustrated in FIGURES 4 through '6. In these FIGURES 4 through 6, like portions are identified by like numbers corresponding to those used in FIGURES 1 through 3 but with the addition of letters a through a for each successive member of the polarizing portion forming the member sandwich.

In FIGURE 7, I have illustrated an etched polarizing film portion 21 with its protective resist 24 being transferred to a support 26 by means of adhesive 27 from a temporary support 26 and adhesive 22.

In the practice illustrated in FIGURE 7 the polarizing film portion 21 is vfixed to support 23 by means of adhesive 22 in precisely the same manner described above in connection with FIGURES 1 through 3. The film is coated with resist 24 over the portion to be protected and finally etched to leave the portion of polarizing film desired. This portion is then transferred to a permanent support 26 and held there by adhesive 27. Succeeding portions 21a, 21b and 21c having axes at 45 to the next preceding portion of film are etched and transferred to the permanent support in the same manner to form a polarizing animator such as is illustrated in FIGURES 9 and 10.

It is obvious that in the embodiment illustrated in FIGURES 7 through 10 that the adhesive 27 could be replaced by the resist 24 if it has adhesive properties thereby eliminating the use of the separate adhesive layer 27. The permanent support 26 can be a transparent permanent support or it may be the photographic transparency which is to be animated or it may be any other form of art to be animated.

In FIGURE 11, I have illustrated various types of animation patterns which may be produced by my invention. The assembly which I have identified by the numerals 31a, 3119 through =31d is made up of polarizing film portions each having successive axes 45 apart. This type of assembly will provide linear motion animation. The portion identified as 32a, 32b, 32c and 32d will provide rotary motion. The portion identified as 33a, 33b, 33c and 33d will provide radiating motion. It will be obvious that many combinations of motion and special effects may be produced by following the practices of this invention.

In FIGURE 12, I have illustrated a form of back lighted animation similar to that described in my Patent 3,054,204. In the present embodiment the polarizing animator 47 is made by etching the several polarizing portions A, B, C and D as described hereinabove and applying them to a transparent permanent support precisely as described in connection with FIGURES 7 through 10. In this form of animation a light source 42 projects through the polarized disc 43, which is rotated by a power source not shown, through the polarizing animator plate 47, through difluser 44, through the transparent art work 45 and is viewed by the eye 46.

In FIGURE 13, I have illustrated a reflector type animator. In this form of animator a light source 52 projects through a polarized disc 56, rotated as in the case of FIGURE 12, then through polarizing animator 57, through the transparent art work 55 and is reflected from a reflecting surface 58 back to the eye :56. In a preferred form the reflector 58 is a highly polished metal surface on which the art Work 55 is applied. The polarizing portions 57 are then applied directly to the art work as the support in the manner described in connection with FIGURES 7 through 10.

In FIGURE 14, I have illustrated the use of a polarizing animator 67 in a projection type of animator such as is particularly described in my copending application Serial No. 168,307, now U. S. Patent No. 3,177,765. In this embodiment a light source 60 is directed against reflector 19 through condensing lenses 61, polarizing animator '67, transparent art work 65, objective lenses 6'2, half wave rotating disc 63, stationary polarizing plate 64, screen 65 and is finally viewed by the eye 66 from either side of the screen 65. If the screen is to be viewed from the back (the side opposite the light source) then it must be translucent. It is possible to replace the stationary polarizer and half wave disc with a rotary polarizing plate or disc with like results.

The present invention is of particular value in the projector form of animator because it permits very small slides to be used (35 mm. for example). Such slides can be made at relatively low cost and in large numbers by the practice of this invention whereas by earlier practices, which required hand cutting and fitting of each polarizing segment, it was virtually impossible to produce such slides.

In the foregoing specification I have set out certain preferred embodiments and practices of my invention. It will be apparent, however, that this invention may be otherwise embodied within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. The method of preparing a polarizing animator comprising the steps of preparing a series of successively angularly oriented sections by coating a section of polarizing 'film on a clear isotropic support of desired shape and orientation with a chemical resist, removing the portion of film not covered :by said resist and assembling said sections in successive angularly oriented position on a support member, said polarizing film sections being carried on separate temporary supports during the coating and removing steps and transferred into side by side relation on a permanent support.

2. The method of preparing a polarizing animator comprising the steps of preparing a series of successively angularly oriented sections by coating a section of polarizing :film on a clear isotropic support of desired shape and orientation with a chemical resist, removing the portion of film not covered by said resist and assembling said sections in successive angularly oriented position on a support member, each said section being carried on its own support and the various sections and their supports being sandwiched to form the (final support and polarizing animator.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,051,603 8/1936 Hruska 1175.5 2,458,439 1/ 1949 Staehlo 15 63 2,490,442 12/ 1949 Kagansky 117--5 .5 2,977,845 4/1961 Boone 16133 3,054,204 9/ 196 2 Yates 40106.52

ALEXANDER WYMAN, Primary Examiner.

EARL M. BERGERT, J. STEINBERG,

Assistant Examiners. 

1. THE METHOD OF PREPARING A POLARIZING ANIMATOR COMPRISING THE STEPS OF PREPARING A SERIES OF SUCCESSIVELY ANGULARLY ORIENTED SECTIONS BY COATING A SECTION OF POLARIZING FILM ON A CLEAR ISOTROPIC SUPPORT OF DESIRED SHAPE AND ORIENTATION WITH A CHEMICAL RESIST, REMOVING THE PORTION OF FILM NOT COVERED BY SAID RESIST AND ASSEMBLING SAID SECTIONS IN SUCCESSIVE ANGULARLY ORIENTED POSITION ON A SUPPORT MEMBER, SAID POLARIZING FILM SECTIONS BEING CARRIED ON SEPARATE TEMPORARY SUPPORTS DURING THE COATING SAID REMOVING STEPS AND TRANSFERRED INTO SIDE BY SIDE RELATION ON A PERMANENT SUPPORT. 